Staff wages unpaid as Fernhill School closes a day early
Teachers at Fernhill School, a private institution in South Lanarkshire, were informed that there are no funds available to cover their redundancy pay or outstanding wages following the school's closure last week.
Originally scheduled to close on Friday, the school had planned a fun day for pupils to bid farewell to their friends. However, the provisional liquidator announced on Thursday that the closure would be moved forward by 24 hours, causing what one parent described as "mass hysteria."
According to reports, teachers were visibly upset, and chaotic scenes ensued as parents attempted to prevent staff appointed by the accountancy firm WBG from removing items from the premises.
Fernhill School had announced in February that it would close at the end of the school term after the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) raised concerns of "misconduct" regarding the school's management.
"We got a message that simply said not to bring children to the school as the fun day was now cancelled – that was all we were told."
"Having it pulled from underneath the young ones was pretty traumatic as they did not understand what was happening."
"Later we were told by teachers that they had found out they wouldn't get paid and redundancy will need to go through the government insolvency scheme, which could take months and means they will not get what they were originally entitled to."
One pupil said agents for the liquidator had quickly started removing valuable items from the building.
She claimed that teachers were kept in the office and were visibly upset by the latest turn of events.
"Teachers were completely distraught. They were standing outside crying. It was completely ridiculous," she said.
Provisional liquidator Donald McKinnon stated that the decision to close the school abruptly was based on safety concerns for children and their families.
A parent, who asked not to be named, said: "For them to say it was being based on the welfare of pupils and staff – it was far from that, because it was mass hysteria.
"Staff were finding out they do not have a wage coming in and staff were finding out they do not have the lump sum due to them coming in now.
"It was horrible, and you literally had bouncy castles and balloons all blown up in the background as this was going in."
Background and financial concerns
The Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) previously stated that Fernhill, a Catholic school catering to primary and secondary pupils, had failed to submit accounts to the regulator for several years.
The school was established in 1972 after a group of parents raised funds to maintain a primary school operated by the Sisters of Notre Dame. Tuition fees were as high as £20,000 annually per pupil.
One parent expressed frustration to BBC Scotland News, questioning the whereabouts of the school's funds in recent years.
WBG reported that the school's two directors, Giuseppe 'Sep' Marini and David Equi, decided to close Fernhill due to "rising costs and VAT on school fees," as well as other challenges faced by the institution.
McKinnon was appointed provisional liquidator following a court petition by Marini and Equi.
He explained that the initial decision to cancel the fun day was made by Equi and several teachers, with his agreement.
"My priorities on that day were dealing with teachers and any children still on site," he said.
"It was a highly charged day with emotions running high where a number of the fun day items had not even been paid for by the business."
McKinnon added that his insurance did not cover the event.
"At the time of my appointment the business had insufficient monies in the bank to pay any staff wages."
Union response and staff treatment
The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) teaching union expressed deep disappointment regarding the treatment of its members and is currently exploring its options.
Amy Moran, EIS area officer, stated:
"The closure of the school, set for 19 June, was only communicated to teachers after pupils and families had already been informed.
"After many unanswered questions and requests for information, it became clear in May that the school intended to make teachers redundant rather than to redeploy them in an integrated school."
She further claimed that teachers had been led to believe they were part of a "pathway to integration between St Aloysius College [a private school in Glasgow] and Fernhill School," which included "retention of Fernhill staff as far as possible."
"Up until Monday 15 June, the school continued to insist that it was still in the financial position to pay teachers' redundancy packages in full.
"But just three days later, liquidators announced that the school could not pay teachers anything at all.
"It remains unclear how long the school has been aware that it would not be in the financial position to pay teachers' redundancy packages."
Fernhill School has been contacted for comment.
